


Neighbors

by SansThePacifist



Series: A:TLA Stories [1]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Ba Sing Se, Drabble, Gen, I wrote this within 30 minutes so there may be a few typos, Implied Decapitation, Just a touch of murder, OC-centric, Oc does not have a name, POV Outsider, Talk of revolution, The Dai Li, and then learn that bratty but kinda shy boy you lived by was the fire prince, and they were neighbors (oh my god they were neighbors), ba sing se was crazy, first atla fic, imagine how wild it would be to go about your day, imagine learning that weird uncle was the fuckin Dragon of the West, implied brain washing, it never happened but they tried, there is no war in ba sing se but there is tea, third person, this is a little grim, this short is probably a lot less interesting than the tags tbh, what the hell???, yeehaw
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-04
Updated: 2020-05-04
Packaged: 2021-03-02 05:07:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 594
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23999467
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SansThePacifist/pseuds/SansThePacifist
Summary: She was neighbors with a young teen and an old man, an uncle and nephew. It hadn't really mattered much to her, they were just like any other person she had met. Scarred by fire, forcing calm, she wondered what they would be like if fire didn't get greedy.
Relationships: Iroh & Zuko (Avatar)
Series: A:TLA Stories [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1815859
Comments: 16
Kudos: 178





	Neighbors

She was neighbors with a young teen and an old man, an uncle and nephew. It hadn't really mattered much to her, they were just like any other person she had met. Scarred by fire, forcing calm, she wondered what they would be like if fire didn't get greedy.

She didn't think about it for long, it was rhetorical after all. She went about her day, helped her brother get out of bed and settle in a chair made of old wood, smiled at customers who only barked and growled.

She came home and her neighbor- the older one, the one who only seemed to smile- offered a cup of tea.

It was suspicious, no one got close to others in Ba Sing Se, no one wanted to risk losing someone else, no one wanted to risk murder or theft or- 

She accepted.

They sat at a table that didn't have anything but a bottle blanket to comfort their knees, they drank from cups that were brittle and almost broken, they talked about everything and nothing, smiled. 

It was the best tea she'd had in years. 

The older man- Mushi, what a strange name- didn't say anything when her eyes teared, only smiled and offered more. Who was she not to accept?

She was neighbors with a boy named Lee and an uncle named Mushi, they shared their coins and offered food when the taxes got tough. She didn't think much beyond it, they were like her after all.

She wouldn't risk getting close to them, couldn't bear her heart or offer a bed. She supposed she should've, since they disappeared. 

It hurt, a little, but she didn't spend long thinking of it. They would show up again, wearing a green hat and memories covered with those of another.

She went about her day.

The Fire Nation had taken the last refuge left for many, shoved their ideals in every crack they could find, hovered and watched as each person went about their day.

She supposed it would have been enough to scare most, but knowing people died for their defiance was somehow better than knowing they got twisted into a nightmare.

She helped her brother out of bed, went to work,, and ignored the portraits of the Fire King (Lord? Duke? Monarch?) that life got twisted around.

The Princess presents heads with a sharp smile.

Months passed and hundreds were dead, thousands injured. Families were already broken, but they were now shattered.

The Princess leaves and talk of revolution boils.

She knows better than to follow it, Fire was watching still.

She went about her day.

A few more months passed and she didn't think much about Mushi or Li until the Avatar freed Ba Sing Se and she learned those names were false.

She went about her day and wondered just how the Dragon of the West could brew such wonderful tea, just how the Fire Prince could be so shy, just how they ended up on the run.

She wondered and wondered and wondered, but she got no answers.

She was neighbors with Iroh and Zuko, but they never burned her. They never pushed, never angered her, did nothing but live like any other refugee would. 

Iroh was still the same man who served tea with a smile, Zuko was still the one who looked away when someone started to compliment him. 

She wondered, for just a second, how they could be any different.

She went about her day and was glad they didn't get bent or buried. 

Then, she forgot.

**Author's Note:**

> I have NO idea where the inspiration for this came from. I was just doing my own thing and suddenly, I HAD to write this. How weird.  
> I hope yall liked it!!


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